WaterOx

I automatically assumed it was harder for everyone, but given that some people are triggered by bars and social drinking, perhaps all of this isolation has somehow helped people? It's difficult to believe but I'm genuinely curious.

least

I find it a lot easier to deal with the restrictions and changes because I'm sober and clear-headed. If I were drinking I'd be careless and stupid.

Being sober makes everything simpler for me. No drama. No danger.

Mizz

Alcohol sales have sky rocketed here. I think it has been very hard on people.
I hear friends and coworkers saying they are drinking more than ever. I fell into that category.
Not now though! It was a nightmare.

BarbieKen

In my home group we have sadly lost 2 young people to overdose during this Pandemic. We were grieving a young man (I wrote briefly about it here on 24 HR Board). Then literally within 7 days of this tragic loss, we all learned in our ZOOM Meeting that a young woman in our HG O.D.d too. This is hard, for me as Mom, I grieve for all the life ahead that will never be. I grieve for their families....

Maybe , like I was in my youth, they believed death came to those “old” people. Then, in their addiction, “going out/come back in” Cycle of abuse.

I’d tell M. (male), please call me or my hubby or son, there is NO guarantee that the next time you go out, you’ll make it back ! I’d plead each time he’d finally come back to our HG meeting. I saw him alive in February, at the last in person meeting that was held . Sorry .... IDK .... just breaks my heart. 💔💔

😥😥

Bobbi

Be123

For me personally (not speaking about trends or in general) it has helped 100%. I have been able to change my routines and patterns to only do stuff that supports recovery.

Also, some of the serious trigggers for me have been removed.

But the main thing is being able to do the things that support me being sober, especially in the first four months. Walking, meditation, diet, therapy, being by myself when I wanted but having people around, my pub being shut, end-of-the-day routine broken. All really helpful

ciowa

It made recovery easier for me because it took away the night life and bar scene that I was immersed in. Even when I stopped drinking over a year ago, I still had a lot of my bar friends on social media and would get euphoric recall from songs that brought back very vivid memories of drinking in the bars with a bunch of energy, noise and boisterous people. I knew i made the right choice in letting that part of my life go but every now and then I would wonder what I might be getting into for the night if I was still doing the night life. Then, when covid hit and wiped out that entire scene, it made my choice seem so much better and had I stayed in the night life, I could imagine what a terrible time I would be having trying to adjust to the changes.

Bilr44

I was almost exclusively a stay at home drinker. I quit drinking March 1st, so I had a couple of weeks practice with isolation, before the lockdowns started. I’ve also worked from home for the last year and a half so that might also have helped. I think you just have to be sober more than you want to drink, regardless of the circumstances.

Zebra1275

At the end of my drinking career I was drinking, or recovering from my drinking most of my waking hours. Trying to keep a steady flow of booze during a pandemic and also hide my drinking from people I'm isolated with would be very difficult.

Hodd

I can’t thank my lucky stars enough that I quit a year and a half before the start of lockdown. I really believe lockdown would’ve been the end of me of it had occurred two or three years ago.

There is a medium-sized supermarket near me, and the areas near each checkout are stacked to shoulder height with boxes (24 cans) of beer. These boxes weren’t there before lockdown. The supermarkets know full well people will be bored and not have to get up for work so will buy a load more beer. I’d have done exactly the same and have drunk at least 8 large cans a night

Personally, lockdown hasn’t affected me much, but I’m very concerned about the physical and mental health of others. How many people will have cut down or quit alcohol over the last six months? Conversely how many people have drunk more than ever before and every day? Many of these will become addicted, and as we know that’s a huge problem.

It’s a shame because lockdown did offer many the chance to do other things and maybe evaluate their lives. Many posters on here did cut down or quit, and that deserves a medal as I’d have struggled hugely. But sadly the long-term effects of Covid look like they’ll surpass the virus itself.

lessgravity

Six of one, half dozen of the other. Booze is there if you want to make the efforts to get it. Covid has made that effort a bit more difficult yet also created more excuses to drink.

The work to be and stay sober remains the same.

And the payoff, the beautiful freedom, is the same as well.

boreas

I have worked from home for about 5 years, 3 of them sober. I had no idea the special dimension being at home would bring to my drinking...no longer having to scrape myself out of bed to present a functional adult somewhere really caused things to spiral. My heart goes out to active drinkers who have had to deal with that abrupt, unwanted transition.

I too was a solitary drinker, so the biggest impact all this has had on me is the daily reminder of how fragile life is. In truth, we are all just an accident or unlucky circumstance from the end in the best of times, but the pandemic has reminded us all of this. Ups the gratitude.
-bora